Herrington 1 Kelsey Herrington A Professor Ditch w \ £ English 115 \W in © 01 November 2019 ‘Naive Child to WorldlffActivist "Americans of Japanese descent from 1942 to 1945 were relocated from their homes to or. They experienced x military zones due to Executive Order 9066 after the attack on Pearl Harb \ .clared adult Japanese Americans signed, post Japanese attack on Peat! Harbor, the President de inside the US “alien enemy” and {required them to] follow strict regulations” (Takei 16). The placement of these regulations caused hatred and violence, towards those whose loyalty was being tested and, “the single most popular political position was ‘Lock up the Japs’” (Takei 20). The hatred from the outside and those suffering inside the internment camps adds to the y) negativity Japanese Americans had to conquer and overcome, George Takei, the author of the vy ¥ 4 graphic novel, They Called Us Enemy, gives a first hand documentation of the Japanese vin ns anese Americans suffered as~ \ \ 4 wa internment camps. His family, along with thousan Jn - ¢ (h— they attemptgéto adjust to their new lives. Sufferin change within them. Without this pain having occurs agnitude affects one and causes \ s 4, s life, he would not be where he’ J he endured in the 1940s as a child, and is today. George Takei was formed through the suffering S suffering caused him to become determined, resilient, and an activist for Japanese ©, v\ \ tt Americans. determination because he understands the nature of his pain. Takei’s suffering yieldéd Takei believes, “It has shaped [him]. As a teenager [he] learned about the internment and theA ee 7 ill Lee os Al os isthen go —3e {giustice," he said at the Los Angeles Times Book Club at the Montalban Theatre (Castaneda). wha Mathieu Ricard says “invisible suffering stems <2 / Author of the article, “What Suffering Dot p from the blindness of our own minds” (36). Takei becomes aware that the cause of his og ; Pel wo A) internment was Americans who ignorantly feared Japanese Americans like him. Being an adult we 7 9 ‘who grew up with surrounding ignorance in his world, Takei wishes to spread awareness and sins to dissolve the ack of knowlege about Japanese Americans, Mathiew Ricard suggests, y frpien we misidentify the nature of those causes [of unhappiness] we come to doubt the oy t x Possibility of healing” (38). Takei does the opposite of this and in turn heals properly. iw y Yb Identifying the cause of his suffering being ignorance makes him determined to end it. Rather ae x e. than allowing the events of his past traumatize him and inhibit him from moving on, he identifies x -s x the causes of the internment and the the injustices occurring to and around him. This knowledge av allowed Takei to learn to preserve. Takei is an actor, known for his appearance as Commander Sulu in ‘Star Trek’. Although he uses the determination he gained in his activism career, he applies this formation to other areas of his life. He displays his learned determination in They ey i Called Us Enemy when he recounts his auditions. Before landing the role, he speaks with his ( agent, Fred Ishimoto about the possibility of the TV series. Takei rehearsed and practiced after \ ‘sperately want that role!”, and wha S (, . a discovering this role, saying “I've got to have that role. { d U 's this goal of his, He rehearse} \ he learned during the 1940s allowed him to work hard towa: everyday and poured his heart int it, securing it as a way to honor his Asian heritage (Take 188). Without having gone through the conflicts that happened as a result of Executive Orde 9066, Takei would not have been formed into the determined man he is today. This determination helps strengthen other parts of his personality that were additionally derived because of the incidents he encountered as a child.me 3 ‘wh om difficulties. Takei developed any? Resilience is the capacity to recover quickly fr “create joy under tough =a ny 1d this as a reaction to events in his childhood, he was able’to use f a ability due to his suffering and now helps him (Castandea). Once he learne¢ asher parts of his life He spreads the message that participation in a democracy is necessary sor ‘because he understands that in order to promote growth, it is important to but rather how to move on. After the internment of not dwell on. change, the negativity and the bad that occurred, Japanese Americans and the suffering they lived through, Takel was given a letter of apology in adorned with a $20,000 check. Takei “went on to donate this 1991 from government officials, National Museum in Los Angeles” (Takei money to the founding of the Japanese American positivity in 193), He takes negative suffering that has happened in his past and changes it into ate with the oppression which occurred for so long, the world, giving back to those who reson: ”", David Brooks, explains the correct response to ‘The author of the article “What Suffering Does”, placing the hard experiences in a moral context and suffering is “seeing life as a moral drama, si mirrors this by trying to redeem something bad by turing it into something sacred” (286). Take taking his bad experience in the interment and turning it into a museum about Japanese vareness and informing the public. The resilience Takei learned through ‘Americans, spreading aw: o beihe man he is today. (2-29 ‘The features which help Takei be the influential rman he is today were acquired sous! v his experience during his time in interament allows him his hardships as a child. Today, he is an activist for rights close to his heart: both Japanese “Americans and the LBTQ+ community. He has first-hand experience of the oppression of both ‘groups and uses his past to strive towards a greater future. As an activist, Takei plans to “further [delve] into Japanese Americans’ treatment in the 20th century, spreading awareness of the experiences these Americans ba © go rough during the World War II internment camps” oy yaHerrington 4 (Democracy, ‘Star Trek’). Familiarity and awareness is important in healing and growth pecause encounters with suffering will not hurt as much as they did the first time: Becoming ) Wn these people and informing others allows society to understand the » in cultures all throughout the world. \ aware of the treatment o} cause and effect relationship of hatred and fear that occurs it ‘Matthieu Ricard explains tp seers “once we have acquired inner well-being, it is easier to |) maintain our fortitude or to recover quickly, even when we are confronted by difficult ( Gg mner well-being is achieved through the knowledge and awareness of one's suffering (41). The suffering as a child which Takei went through is defined by Ricard as being J ¢ freedom from care, fun”, or hidden suffering. His 7 circumstances”, this “concealed beneath the appearance if pleasure, parents explain to the family they are going on vacation rather than exposing the truth that they ony i are being ripped away from their homes. Although the suffering was visible to the parents, tre \ they did not know the difference between a vacation and moving This hidden suffering became visible to Takei and the other children quickly once they realized) s\ 0 ss helped him become familiar with it, rather \ kids were naive and young; the vacation was their new life and this awarene: t than afraid, Had Takei not experienced this suffering as a young child like he did, he would not have been formed the same way, and would most likely lack the passion needed to become @ social activist. One may disagree that Takei’s suffering éHerrington 5 the man he is today. He is such a passionate activist because he that have made him into ith the issues he presents tothe public through his philanthropic deeds. Connection those who did ‘ resonates Wi his cause and lacking this connection makes with those he is helping strengthen: ne suffering less credible. The argument could be made that many activists and not endure t having gone through tough times and true suffering. Bu people possess these attributes without the pressure surrounding, so they do not relate to these people have not needed to activate them, resiliency Takei formed through his suffering makes suffering and pain, The determination and him a strong activist which people want to listen to. Without having gone through the experience of Executive Order 9066, he would not have had the opportunity to build these qualities. After World War II and Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, the 1940s became a difficult time for Japanese Americans as they struggled with their belonging in the United States. Japanese “Americans in the United States fought their own personal battles. They suffered losses of homes, jobs, families, and the deterioration of their own lives in front of them. In They Called Us ‘Enemy, George Takei provides readers with a documentation of the Japanese internment camps in the form of a graphic novel. Illustrator Harmony Becker captures the pain and horror Japanese “Americans weathered due to the prejudice of the American people. The reader has a clear understanding of the horrific conditions and treatment Japanese Americans went through ci wishes to do. He wishes to bring Softening the effects of internment is not whet Te knowledge to the readers and spread the truth as an activist. Preconceptions that hurt Japanese ‘Americas are instilled in society today and many, like Takei, attempt to shatter the stereotypes. Through his novel, readers witness his suffering and the formation of determination and resilience that shaped him into the man he is today, one who inspires others and works to changeGe Herrington 6 the world, no matter his age, rae, or sexuality. George Takei has braved terrifying experiences Works Cited Brooks, David. “What Suffering Does”. Pursuing Happiness: a Bedford Spotlight Reader, by ~ Matthew Parfitt and Dawn Skorezweski, Bedford/St. Martin’s, a Macmillian Education | Imprint, 2016. Pp, 284-287. o"ProQuest, Oct 10, 2019, arch proquest.com/docview/2303356648?ace “Democracy, ‘Star Trek’ and Activism — an Interview with George Takei.” Oct 26, 2016. ProQuest, " University Wire, http://libproxy.csun.edw/login?url=https://search,proquest.com/docview/21136776552ace ountid=7285, ProQuest, is Parfitt and Ricard, Matthieu. Pursuing Happiness: a Bedford Spotlight Reader, by Matthew awn Skorezweski, Bedfor/St. Mat lacmillian Education Imprint, 2016. Pp 34- > ki, Bedfor/St. Martin's, a Macmillian Educatic i, 41 . \. 2019. Print. Takei, George. They Called Us Enemy. 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